Electric Car use.

[Walt G]

The on going banter about the use of electric vehicles because they are better for assorted reasons : the environment, noise factor, bat trees, health, are not new. Here is a folder issued circa 1900 ( no date on it) that tells of the Columbia Electric vehicles of the New England Electric Vehicle Transportation Company . Note their phone number is 730. that's is just 730 . Beyond the electric vehicles they also offered gasoline vehicles.

The folder even lists the charg9ing stations as well.

 

Edited March 9, 2023 by Walt G
additional infoprmation (see edit history)

[wayne sheldon]

That is a wonderful look at an important point of our history! For most of a hundred years, mechanical motive power had been almost exclusively steam engines. Other than burning to create steam, gasoline related chemical power had become practical only about twenty years earlier. Electric power had been played with, however practical battery technologies were just getting going in 1he 1890s.

That first decade of the twentieth century was the battleground time for practical power supremacy between the three major portable sources. And for a hundred years since, gasoline has reigned supreme!

That will of course change, at some point in the future for the better. And hopefully a few more times yet again! When? Only future historians will know.

 

A wonderful piece Walt G! Thank you for sharing that.

[Walt G]

Wayne

You are most welcome. Glad I have so many projects that cause me to look at my collection and now see things that i haven't seen in decades. I was glad I collected what I did when I did , and because of the forums and the print publications have the chance to share it. I am not a hoarder, if what I share makes someone happy then that is just what it is all about to me.

The electric vehicles of the pre 1920 era were very popular in large cities , particularly here in the North East. charging stations were more reachable and electric trucks were very popular. The simple piece of paper I shared says a lot about that era, no real large photos but the point of why to have an electric vehicle is well presented. I hope it makes those seeing this think a bit. Roads at the time were pretty awful, even in cities - pavement was by Belgian block which can prove to be pretty bumpy , add in trolley and train tracks to maneuver over and it was a tough job sometimes to drive.

More weirdness and odd vehicles to follow as time allows.

Walt

 

[Paul Dobbin]

I've only experienced two electric cars in my life and they were built a Century apart.

First was a 1917 Milburn Electric Opera Coupe owned by Ted Holden of Jupiter Florida.   He used it to escort elderly women to the Breakers Club in Palm Beach.   Always a crowd pleaser like his 1935 Brewster.   He and I did 9 Great Races together in his 35 Chrysler Airflow and he wanted to enter the Electric Car Rally forn Jacksonville to Miami.   Sorry be we would have had to stop for a long battery recharges so many times that we would have finish days aftert the other entrants.

Second was a 2017 Chevrolet VOLT.   A friend drove it up from Florida on the gas powered generator.   I drove it and was impressed by it's electric speed and acceleration but the range was quite low.   Sure was more comfortable than the Milburn.   It also had a steering wheel instead of two sticks.

Not ready for electric yet!

[Jubilee]

 Hey Walt

 We had a 3 digit phone number until the
early fifties. Single line.

 Town of 3000. Hospital, high school, library, courthouse,

movie theater, drive in movie, VFW, railroad, numerous 

churches, newspaper, three grocery stores, great

place to grow up.

 You gave the operator the number after the “ number please”

 I still remember the number. Grilled into me by my Mom. 

[brasscarguy]

I owned a 1913 Waverly electric unrestored and very runnable. New batteries and battery cables installed and pneumatic tires replacing the hard rubber ones and it was ready for the road.

 

The speedometer showed 24,300 miles when I purchased the car. It had been used in downtown San Francisco for much of its early life.

 

I was excited to take it out for a spin. I engaged the controller and it slowly moved forward. As the speed increased it was ever so quiet. That was the exciting part of ownership.

 

Now for the sad part. As it only had a single gear in forward or reverse. When I came upon a slight grade the car slowed down and the current draw went up and up. No matter how slight the grade 5 miles per hour was the climbing speed. I could reach 25 per on the flat.

 

The Waverly was chain drive and not possible to modifiy or install 2 speed gears. So as unique as it looked a colonial coupe, it was not practical to use. So I sold it a few years ago, it now resides in Moscow Russia. There is a U-tube video posted if you search 1913 Waverly Electric.

 

brasscarguy

 

 

 

 

[Restorer32]

We restored a 1918 Rauch and Lang.  Surprisingly it had a tax sticker on the windshield indicating that it was still being driven as late as 1938.

[hidden_hunter]

14 minutes ago, Restorer32 said:

We restored a 1918 Rauch and Lang.  Surprisingly it had a tax sticker on the windshield indicating that it was still being driven as late as 1938.

I wouldn't have been surprised if there were a few going through WW2 - though I'm guessing rubber restrictions would eventually catchup with them

[nat]

On 3/9/2023 at 3:14 PM, Walt G said:

Note their phone number is 730.

     In the interest of nitpicky and unimportant details, the phone number was "Tremont 730", (maybe 873-730)

[prewarnut]

Correct, you still needed the operator to "plug" into the correct exchange. Also most residences didn't have phones from 1880-1910 or so in the cities (unless the last name was Morgan, Frick, Astor, etc) so you looked things up in a business directory, found the address and walked on over, or took your horse, or a trolley or an EV or....

[8E45E]

It may be true for private vehicles, but one must keep in mind, electric vehicles never went away completely for those 100 years.  Electric trolley buses for city transit use remained in use in many major cities in North America and England, and they still do.  Aside from having to maintain the overhead electric wires, they have proven to be very efficient, and probably will become more so as technology for electric vehicles increases each year.

 

Craig

[wws944]

The Fountainhead Museum in Fairbanks Alaska has a 1903 Columbia Electric on display.  Couple other antique electrics (Argo, R&L) as well.

https://www.fountainheadmuseum.com/fountainheadauto/2011/10/new-arrival-1903-columbia-electric.html

 

There is a 1916 Detroit Electric located in the Trolley Barn at the History Park in San Jose, CA.  It is in excellent condition and is quite runnable.  It was owned by two sisters who lived in downtown San Jose.  They used it as a daily driver for decades.  After they died, a local collector owned it for some years - until the museum finally purchased it.  Many people who visit the Trolley Barn had no idea that vintage electrics ever existed!

 

https://www.ctrc.org/projects/trolleys-trolleybarn/the-collection

Edited April 9, 2023 by wws944 (see edit history)

[60FlatTop]

You can still find paperback copies of this book. It is great! Lot of early electric and gas stories from the time when Connecticut was the booing automotive center. Columbia cars. Well worth hunting down and reading.

 

[1937hd45]

The Fountainhead collection has some really great early cars, wonder if that one is a rerestored Henry Austin Clark car? 

[Billy Kingsley]

I saw this at the last Hemmings Concourse back in 2019 in Lake George NY. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's a 1911 Waverly and is all original save tires. 

 

The interior looks like you're driving around in your living room...it was very impressive to me. I believe this is the only tillared steering car I've ever seen at a car show in my life, although I can't remember everything I've seen since I've been attending shows my whole life. I've certainly seen others in museums. 

 

 

 

[charlier]

23 minutes ago, Billy Kingsley said:

I saw this at the last Hemmings Concourse back in 2019 in Lake George NY. 

It's a 1911 Waverly and is all original save tires. 

 

The interior looks like you're driving around in your living room...it was very impressive to me. I believe this is the only tillared steering car I've ever seen at a car show in my life, although I can't remember everything I've seen since I've been attending shows my whole life. I've certainly seen others in museums. 

I remember seeing & judging  one of these years ago at an AACA Meet. I also remember that the owner of that vehicle didn't think he needed to have a fire extinguisher for that vehicle at that meet. Sure glad the meet's Chief Judge and the VP of Judging had to deal with that situation.

[Leif in Calif]

Here's a neat short video on Jay Leno's Baker Electric.  At the other end of the spectrum, my nephew the Tesla engineer, showed up at the Easter gathering with a Plaid engineering car. Zero to Sixty in a tick under 2 seconds. You have to brace your head against the headrest when it launches our you can actually be injured! Something young men love...me not so much. 

 

[Restorer32]

We will be showing a 1921 Milburn Electric at Charlotte.